“Mmm.” Ruby plopped down next to Cordy. “That’s a Kessal man for you.”
Cordy bit her lip. “Chance told me a little bit about it. And about Holden.”
“He did?” Ruby’s eyebrows flew up. “I had to practically pry the stories out of Quint, and I know there’s still a lot he hasn’t told me.”
“Did their dad… did he abuse them?” There was no way Cordy was going to ask Chance that, but she was desperate to know.
Ruby sighed. “Physically, no. But when Laura died, Holden just… went away. Didn’t get out of bed some days. Quint and Chance had to take care of Rye and Lane, and they were barely adults themselves. It stunted all of them in their own unique way.”
“I think Bowie is pretty normal,” Chelsea said. When Ruby glared at her, she said, “Come on, you’re always complaining about Quint. I know you love him, but he’s as messed up as the rest.”
“Yeah, but I get to say that, not you.”
Cordy cleared her throat. “So, um, how messed up would you say Chance is? On a scale of Bowie to Lane? Lane being the most screwed up.”
Ruby cocked her head. “Why are you asking?”
“We slept together,” Cordy said. “And now he’s disappeared because I scared him off. He can’t do more than one night, and I knew that, and I did it anyway.”
It came out too fast for her to think too much about what she was saying.
Chelsea and Ruby both made sympathetic noises. Chelsea patted Cordy’s back like she was one of her kids.
Then Ruby held up her hand. “Wait, you only just now slept with him? I thought you two were going at it for way longer than that.”
Cordy wiped her eyes. “He’d make me come but never let me do him.”
“Wow,” Ruby said drolly, “what a gentleman.”
“Uh, that actually sounds pretty nice,” Chelsea said. “Kind of… worshipful.”
Ruby sucked in a breath. “You’re not in love with him, are you?” She made it sound like the worst mistake ever.
Cordy shook her head. “I know better than that. And he’s not in love with me either. We had sex to start labor, but it didn’t work. He’s helping me out here.”
Her belly started to tighten again. She had to focus to get through the pressure. God, what was happening?
“Only helping you out?” Chelsea’s eyes went wide. “A man like him doesn’t have you move in just tohelp out.”
Chelsea didn’t understand about her and Chance, but Cordy couldn’t catch her breath to tell her.
Ruby pressed her lips together. “Honey, he’s been in deep with you since he answered your ad, but Chance is too terrified to admit it. That’s the Kessal in him—all those men are emotionally constipated.”
“But… but you and Quint…” Cordy frowned. “He had to have?—”
The rest of her words were swallowed in a hard gasp. Her entire body clenched, pain radiating from her belly. It was white-hot, unrelenting.
She grunted, gasped. Ruby’s hand on her shoulder, dim voice in her ear.
Hurt. Stop this.
It felt like forever, but eventually, slowly, the fist of pain in her middle released. It took longer for her to catch her breath.
“Cordy.” Ruby was shaking her shoulder. “The baby is coming, isn’t it?”
Chelsea was already getting up, pulling out her phone. “I’ll call an ambulance.”
“No.” Cordy’s heart jumped into her ribs like a terrified bird beating against a cage. “No, it’s only Braxton-Hicks. I was joking about sex making labor start!”
